[Ref in PA]

I saw a play this past year. Team A calls a set play, one they have run previously in the game. It appears A1 was tossing an alley oop pass to A2 only the "pass" hit the rim. A2 backed off and did not touch the ball during his initial jump. When A2 gave A1 a dirty look for the bad "pass", A1 winked at A2. I find out later from the coach that A1 was trying to make the shot, rather than passing to A2. The motion of A1 was similar in this play to the previous plays, only this time A1 tried to make the basket instead of pass. It wasn't a bad pass, it was a missed try.

How do I know what is going through the mind of a kid when he is passing the ball? I realize the FED allows us to judge if it is a pass or not and make a call accordingly - see 4.15.4 C (c), but I don't think I can go wrong by calling a pass that hits the rim a try. However, in the play above I thought the kid was passing when in reality it was a try.